


A Long Day

by pplchangeppl



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Astrid-centric, Beard origin story, Chief Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, F/M, Haddock family, Hiccstrid - Freeform, Hiccstrid Oneshot, Momstrid, Older Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Oneshot, dadcup, post httyd3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-22
Updated: 2019-03-22
Packaged: 2019-11-27 02:15:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18188450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pplchangeppl/pseuds/pplchangeppl
Summary: Astrid lets off some steam after a long day“Mommy, can we play with weapons too?” She heard the unmistakably squeaky voice of her precious Zephyr.Sighing, she faked her best smile and said: “Not now Babe, Mommy has to go...let off some steam.”akaAstrid is a modern woman who's tired of taking shitakaThe beard origin storyakasome sweet Haddock Family fluff





	A Long Day

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Fic! I'm so excited to share this with you all and I hope you like it!  
> I wrote a big blurb at the end on my reasoning behind the piece so stay tuned.

Astrid Haddock considered herself to be a level-headed person. Now, she wasn’t always this way. When she was younger she was hot-headed, rash, quick to jump to conclusions, and always wore her heart on her sleeve. However, she was a chieftess now, not just a warrior. She was a mother and a wife, a general and a strategist. Gone were the days of chucking her axe into defenseless trees or screaming on the side of a cliff. But _ Gods _ she wanted to!

She stomped down the steps from the Great Hall, down to her home. Fists clenched and jaw set, she tried desperately to keep the anger that clawed within her at bay. She blew past concerned Vikings in the village square, providing them with a tight-lipped grimace to satiate their concerned gazes. She had a reputation to uphold, a village to take care of, but she wanted nothing more than to let all her feelings out and for  _ once _ not care who stared.

She reached her front door just in time. If she had to fake a smile for one more person, dodge one more “small favor”, she knew she’d burst. She swung her door open and stormed into the house. Immediately, she ripped off her white fur cloak, suffocated by its weight both physically and metaphorically. She picked up her axe off its coveted spot on the wall, feeling how the weight was perfectly balanced in her hand. She had to blow some dust off; it had been  _ so long _ since she’d had the time to train. All of a sudden, she felt like that fifteen-year-old girl again, with the urge to sink her blade into the side of a tree so at least she could do  _ something _ of immediate consequence, something she had complete control over.

As if on cue, squeals and giggles wafted into the room as two young children toddled their way in to see their mother. They were followed by Valka who laughed and gazed fondly at their stumbling. She was as serene as ever...until she saw the look on Astrid’s face. Astrid froze, axe swung over her shoulder, momentarily blocked from resolutely heading towards the back door. Valka knew that look. She'd  _ felt _ the same way so many times for so many different reasons during her time as chieftess. She could imagine that the strains of the life she'd lived hadn't changed all that much over the years. She immediately sprang into action, scooping up the kiddos in her arms and backing out of her way. Astrid gave her mother-in-law a look of silent gratitude and took that as an excuse to head outside.

“Mommy, can we play with weapons too?” She heard the unmistakably squeaky voice of her precious Zephyr from over her shoulder.

She took a deep breath and tried her best to even out her voice: “Not now Babe, Mommy has to go... _ let off some steam _ .”

With that, she promptly stalked into the woods and with the bloodcurdling battle cry of a warrior, struck down the first unlucky tree in sight.

_ Whack! _

 

That was for the stupid, stubborn council of elders she now spent her days dealing with.

_ Slice! _

 

That was for the condescending explanations and ‘I told you so looks’ she got from every male Viking on this goddamn island!

_ Crack! _

 

Not even during her pregnancies had she been  _ coddled _ so much! At least then Hiccup had been there to remind people that she was a human being and not just a vessel for the heir of Berk. If need be, he’d even helped her break the antiquated rules that attempted to stifle her. She remembered when he had come up with another one of his contraptions to help her continue her duties without “straining herself” as the council put it. She remembered how he held her at night and told her how he knew she could do anything, baby or no, how she was the  _ strongest _ person he’d ever met.

 

_ Thud! _

 

Of course, that was when he was here on New Berk, with her. Now, she was basically running the village and her family all by herself! Thank the gods for Valka and her parents, without which she surely would have cracked before now. She hated being chief! She wasn’t the calm, cool, and collected negotiator that Hiccup was. She was the good soldier! She took orders and executed them (flawlessly she might add). She didn’t want to be part of the bureaucracy of it all. It was exhausting and frustrating. She thought that she'd had her fair share of that already being the chief’s wife, having to make nice with dignitaries and attend countless feasts and festivals. She wanted to go back to being the best strategist and warrior this island had ever seen!

She wanted a lot of things. She wanted to calm down, to get a grip. She wanted to be with her kids, to be the best Mother for her kids, but all she could feel was this overwhelming, all-consuming exasperation and  _ longing _ ! She  _ longed _ for her husband! She wanted Hiccup to come back from his months-long trip and sweep her off her feet. She wanted him to kiss her in that way that made everything seem alright if only for a moment…

 

_ Whack! Crack! Thud! _

 

Astrid felt a hot tear on the edge of her cheek. She missed him in every way possible. He’d never been gone this long, not since they’d been married, certainly not since they’d had kids and it was all too much! She missed her best friend, her confidante, her partner, the person who always fought for her, the best father, a patient ruler...

 

_ Whack! Crack! Slice! Thwack! Swoosh! Slam! Thud! _

 

“Woah there, I’d hate to be the Viking who pissed you off.”

 

Astrid whirled around, eyes wild, mind still spinning. She could barely believe her eyes when she saw her Hiccup in front of her after all these months, like a dream.

 

Instantly her expression softened into one of pure disbelief. Her axe landed on the ground in a loud thud and she ran into Hiccup’s open arms. She slammed into his chest, causing them both to stumble backward. Hands clutched shoulders, arms squeezed as if to make sure the other wouldn’t vanish. Hiccup chuckled as the pair regained their footing, pulling back to properly take in the face he was only able to see in his dreams for far too long. Astrid beamed up at him, eyes brimming with tears of relief that fell no matter how much she tried to hold them back. Hiccup’s brow furrowed at the sight, wiping the tears away with his thumbs and subsequently resting his forehead against hers to let her know that he was  _ there _ . He was real and he wasn’t going anywhere. They stayed like that for a while, taking in each other’s presence, letting a profound sense of peace watch over them.

Then, Hiccup muttered an oh-so-snarky “Miss me?”

He flashed her that million dollar smirk in an attempt to lighten the mood. Unfortunately for him, no matter how badly damaged the trees behind them were, Astrid still had plenty of strength to give him a playful yet effective punch to the arm. To his credit, Hiccup was quick on his feet. He grabbed her wrist before she could pull it back to her side and instead pulled her back towards him so he could steal a kiss. She made a noise of surprise but soon sank into the kiss as she wound her hands in his hair.

“DADDY!”

Zephyr and Nuffink shrieked and babbled with delight as they ran outside to join the homecoming celebration, Valka grinning behind them all the while. Hiccup let out an unabashedly joyous, hearty laugh- another thing Astrid had sorely missed- and let go of her briefly to lift his son and daughter high into the air. He showered them with hugs and kisses as they giggled, pulling at his ears and the hair of his beard. His  _ beard _ . It took Astrid having a moment to take in the scene in front of her to realize that Hiccup had a beard that certainly wasn’t there before his voyage. Sure, he’d tried to grow a beard before, but it had always been scratchy and patchy and she always refused to kiss him until he shaved it off. A very effective tactic, if she said so herself. However, after long months at sea, his beard was much fuller and much thicker. It wasn’t long per se, still in it’s beginning stages, but he’d done it. And Astrid practically huffed as it dawned on her that there was no way she’d be able to get him to shave now. His new beard was  _ hot _ and he knew  _ she _ knew it when he saw the way her jaw went slack and her eyes widened. He gave her yet another smirk and Astrid felt as if their roles had been woefully reversed. She snickered to herself and shook her head, sidling up to her perfect little family. She nuzzled the side of her son’s face, gently lifting him into her own arms so as to lighten Hiccup’s load. Hiccup instead slid his arm around his wife’s waist and pulled her flush to his side. He laid a gentle kiss on her hairline and his lips lingered for a moment. He mumbled lowly so only she could hear, his voice thick with emotion.

“I missed you too, milady”.

Astrid’s smile grew impossibly wider. She closed her eyes, leaning into the crook of his neck and sighed. Everything was alright now, everything was perfect. She could handle anything, take on any challenge, as long as her best friend was right along beside her.

**Author's Note:**

> This is incredibly Astrid-centric. I wanted to give her some sorely deserved love. I know everyone has a different take on Astrid. Her femininity and vulnerability. This is just one version of Astrid that I have in my own personal canon-verse. But I really like the idea that despite her growth since httyd 1, she's still that feisty, hot-headed girl we fell in love with even if that was one of her biggest (felt like only) flaws. A little rage is a good thing! It's how we got such a passionate Viking queen. I also love the idea that even though she could totally do it, that she isn't chief because she doesn't enjoy it. Her skill set is such that she gets frustrated with the finesse and delicacy of what is basically politics. She's always known who she is and what she's good at and I like to believe she's always known that Hiccup's patience and conscientiousness make him the best suited for that job, even if he doesn't make the connection for quite some time. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.
> 
> I would appreciate any and all feedback you guys want to give me  
> This is my first fic of many so stay tuned! I am utterly obsessed with Hiccstrid and have been since age 10 *tear*


End file.
